Want a better work/life balance? Work for a millennial

Millennial business owners are redefining compensation and benefits for their workers.

Though they make up a small share of business owners, they “have an overall outlook on their business prospects,” grow faster, and plan to expand benefit offers, according to research from the Principal Financial Group.

Compared with baby boomer business owners, they’re willing to offer more flexible work schedules, along with benefits such as daycare, free food, and laundry services.

They’re also more likely to delegate work.

“Millennials were overwhelmingly the most likely to use a financial professional. Ninety percent of millennials said they rely on a financial professional for their personal and/or business situation, compared to only 71 percent of boomers utilizing these services,” according toBusiness Wire.

That lets business owners work less, but remain competitive.

“Millennials work significantly fewer hours per week on average (38.8) compared to Gen X-ers (47.8) and baby boomer (47.1) business owners,” Business Wire noted.

That bodes well for millennial workers. Their business-owning peers know the work conditions they want, and they’re ready to attract workers with those benefits and flexibility. With the general unemployment rate declining, the labor market isn’t a buyer’s market anymore. Businesses will have to compete for the most talented millennials who have accepted anything so long as they could get a job. Now, they’re demanding more from their boss.

Happier workers tend to be more productive. As the baby boomers retire, so go their “crotchety grandpa” perspective that think the youth complain too much. As millennials approach their peak entrepreneurial stride in the next couple decades, work/life balance could become the priority it currently isn’t.